Hey all! Thanks for making your way back to my blog. I've loved your comments. Keep them coming! :) So my morning started off with some time with the Lord...time praying that is. Let me give you a little example of my prayer this morning..."God please give me eyes like yours so that I can see people the way that you do. I pray that I can have a heart like yours. Help me to love people that way you do." This was my main cry this morning. I've been getting nervous to start our ministry on Monday. We are all placed at different ministry sites. Mine is called Open Door ministry. All I know is that I am working with kids. Once I am there I will give you all a better picture of what it is. All the ministries are downtown. Mine in particular is right across the street from my house and for all of you who do not know, we live in a rougher part of Denver. So I've been getting a little nervous. What if I went into my ministry site with preconceived notions or judgements. What if I didn't know how to love these children the way that I should? What if I was intimidated or scared of them and what they bring to the table? So many thoughts and then so many lies from the enemy..."you can't do this. you will never be able to relate to these kids. they will hate you. you will fail." So I just began to pray this morning that the Lord would give me His eyes and His heart so that I could see and love these children the way He does.
Our morning lesson was about prayer and the prayer life of Jesus. It was so humbling to really see they way that the Lord prayed. It really put things in perspective and made me see how little that I pray and how much my prayer life needs work! I began to realize that the Lord even prayed for the Father to help Him. He could not do anything by Himself. He needed the Father just the way we do. He was fully dependent on His Father. God's greatest work is done by men and women who are totally dependent on Him. Jesus' goals in praying were to minister to the Father, depend on the Father and fulfill the Father's will. I began to realize that if I am depending on Him fully that He will lead me and He will work through me and because of that I will be fulfilling His will.
Following our lesson we spent time going around the group and saying a prayer for someone that the Lord placed on our heart. I barely know these people I am on project with yet. I know them surface level and here we are all pouring our heart out to God and praying for someone in our life and as people began to get vulnerable praying for their lost friends, their relationship with their parents to be restored, their sister with cancer, their professors to know the Lord, etc. I found myself crying. All the sudden I had a deep and heavy burden on my heart for these people and I just prayed and prayed. Afterwards all I could find to do was thank the Lord for already answering one of my prayers by giving me a heart more like His. I know that if I depend on Him He will do the same for me when I walk through the doors of my ministry site Monday morning and meet all the kids that I will build relationships with for the next month.
I don't know what your prayer life is like but I can almost guarantee that it could be better, you could be spending more time in communion with our God. I know I could and I know that I could spend MUCH more time talking to Him about things other than myself and my needs. I challenge you to reevaluate your prayer life today. Maybe you have an AWESOME prayer life and could encourage someone else in theirs. Along those lines I would LOVE it if you would please send me your prayer requests. As I begin to change my prayer life I would really like to spend more time praying for others in my life.
Just a little more on my day quickly...we did a scavenger hunt through Denver to get more familiar with the city. That was SO fun...my team lost...but that's okay! :) I tried to meet Tim Tebow at a book signing but the ticket were sold out. I WILL MEET HIM ONE DAY! Mark my word! ;) And then tonight me and some girls went for a walk to 16th street mall and to see the Art Chalk downtown. It was incredible! You should check out my pics on fbook! Alright if you are still reading..thank you! I am going to spend some time with the Lord and get some rest. Tomorrow morning I go to church at my ministry site bright and early! I'm excited to worship and praise the Lord with the people of Denver.
J
one thing I have learned especially last summer was that when you dont know how to serve the children, how to fix their problem, the only thing they need is LOVE. Love is healing and powerful and the love from the Lord that will overflow from your heart towards them will be life changing! "All you need is love"
ReplyDeletewhat a beautiful portrait of prayer, Jesus prayed to God...because He can't even do it on His own! WOW! thank you for the encouragement. I love hearing your heart! Have a great first day tomorrow my love!
Jessica, you are the only person that I know that can make me cry one second and laugh the next. I know that my prayer life could definitly use some improvement. I am so excieted to see what the Lord has in store for you. I will miss you, but know that this is where the Lord has you and that through Him you will do great things. I love you babe.
ReplyDelete"Help me overcome my unbelief!" Mark 9:24. I just looked to this word myself! Whenever the enemy tells you you can't, ask God to help you believe that you can! You're there to grow closer to God and to change lives! Look to Him to give you the tools you need to do His will :) He doesn't call the equipped, He equips the called. Love you!
ReplyDeleteIf I have ever taught you anything, I hope it is to take everything as it is.... no judgements...I know that you will do great in ministering to these kids...remember when Megan and I went to Mexico? We were soooo nervous.....but it turned out to be the most amazing experience, i found myself after only a few hours with these kids wanting to take one home and I remember sitting there holding this little sick kiddoe and praying for him and praying that He would know the Lord and that his life would be blessed. Ever since then when I feel like i'm about to make a judgement I remember that little boy and how I loved him after a few seconds and how I still love him to this day. Makes things a bit better knowing that you can make a HUGE difference in the lives of people...kids especially. I know that I have changed and my life has changed since that trip...Also, I know that I can have a better prayer life...you know I sit here on my rear end all day...because well I can't do much more...but I find myself praying when I don't even think i'm praying...I am glad I read this because it reminds me of some things I can be praying for and it also reminds me that prayer is very strong!!!! So here is a prayer request from me....that I can HEAL! lol because we all know the motorized scooter rocks but i'd rather walk. I love you and i'm so proud of you!! Let me know how this adventure go and remember kids are Meg and I's life we can help if there is something tough. I LOVE YOU! Sorry I wrote a novel..
ReplyDeleteCarrie,
ReplyDeleteYou are right! And as you will read in my next blog I am so silly to ever think I would pass an unfair judgement onto these kids because they are so sweet! Also, I will pray for healing for sure! :) I love you! Thank you for the comment.
Ash,
I am so glad that you reminded me of that. That is something the Lord was teaching me a lot of last semester in our Beth Moore study and apparently He is still teaching me that. :) Thanks for the reminder.
Mom and Em,
You guys are amazing faithful readers! ;) Love you both!